***SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER IN THE SWAMP - MIA @ NYJ***

***MIAMI DOLPHINS @ NEW YORK JETS***

Ah yes, the late season Saturday Night Special has returned! An AFC East battle that probably wouldn't get too much draw on a Sunday will take center stage tonight as the Miami Dolphins look to keep their playoff hopes alive when they head into what will be a cold and wet environment at MetLife Stadium to take on their division rival, the lowly New York Jets. The Fish currently sit with an 8-5 record and Wild Card dreams are very much alive as the spot is there for the taking, so long as Miami can finish their season strong. In what has become an extremely tight race for that last AFC Wild Card spot, the Dolphins cannot afford to lose a game the rest of the way and especially not one they should win since unlike Miami, the Jets know and have known the fate of this season as they have been officially eliminated from playoff contention. However Miami has suffered a crucial blow to their team when QB Ryan Tannehill went out with a knee injury in last week's slop fest against Arizona and they will be without him here tonight. In steps the 32 year old veteran backup QB Matt Moore who over the years has proven to be one of the more solid backups in the NFL, but it should be noted that he has not started an NFL game in 5 years. Needless to say there could be a rust factor here, but luckily for the Fish they face a weaker opponent in the Jets, one whom they have already beaten 27-23 in the first go round in Miami during week 9. Tonight's game will be a battle of the backups as the Jets have officially made the change at QB when they handed the keys over to Sophomore Bryce Petty last week in San Francisco, and have chosen to utilize the rest of this lost season to see what the kids got. The Jets QB change was finally made mid-game two weeks ago during an absolute drubbing on MNF when the Colts came into MetLife and destroyed the Jets from start to finish in what was a complete embarrassing defeat for Head Coach Todd Bowles and the Jets' organization, losing the game by a score of 41-10. The Jets looked dead and there was a clear lack of effort throughout the beat down and the NY media had a field day, or week I should say, ripping apart the Jets limb from limb. As mentioned, Petty started the next game in SF, against another NFL bottom-feeder and things looked to be getting just as ugly when the Niners shot out to an early 14-0 lead in the first quarter. To everyone's surprise, including my own, the Jets showed some true grit when they battled back in the second half to steal a road win when they put forth a total team effort and beat the 49ers 23-17. I believe this was a big time positive turnaround for the psyche of this team and at the perfect time where they will carry that momentum into tonight's game in what could be the perfect spot for a nice upset!

You already know with the season long over, the Jets would love nothing more than to end or at least hinder their division rival's playoff hopes at home, in the Prime Time spotlight. They owe it to their fans to give this game everything they have after their last home game and Prime Time embarrassment. A win here would be a small triumph in a season full of chaos and turmoil, and I believe they get it done. These two teams know each other extremely well, obviously. I love this spot and believe the combination of injuries, weather, and home field more than evens the playing field between these two tonight. This is essentially the Jets mini Super Bowl, their last hurrah if you will. With Matt Moore at QB, the Dolphins will surely look to lean heavily on the running game behind RB Jay Ajayi but without their anchor in Center Mike Pouncey who was placed on IR recently, it could prove difficult. Ajayi took the NFL by storm with a couple huge performances when Pouncey was back in the lineup and the offensive line was finally fully healthy. Now Pouncey is gone again, and with key other offensive lineman like Tunsil and Albert banged up, I fully expect the Jets to take advantage with blitzes in an effort to stifle the run and make Moore beat them. Don't get me wrong, I am probably one of the biggest critics of this Jets secondary, and from what I remember in watching Matt Moore in the past, he is fully capable of doing so, especially with the speedy weapons Miami has at WR. However, even though he got some brief action in relief for Tannehill last week against Arizona, I think Moore and the Miami offense will have a tough time getting things going in the cold weather with chances of rain and snow, up against a motivated and charged up Jets defense. On the other side of things I like what I saw from Petty last week in SF. I was hard on the kid and quickly wrote him off as incapable but he showed me something last week that I like, passion and toughness. After leading the Jets to a big comeback, I think he will now have some confidence going into this start that he hadn't had previously. RB Bilal Powell has provided a sudden spark to this offense in the running game as well as catching dump off passes out of the backfield and has proven to be a reliable safety net for Petty. Powell has been a YAC monster lately and the offense has fed off his energy with the way he has burst through defenses and I expect him to carry the load tonight with RB Matt Forte nursing an injury. The young Jets WR core in Quincy Enunwa and Robby Anderson have really come on strong as well and seem to have built a rapport with Petty. WR Brandon Marshall has been quiet as of late but this guy loves the spotlight and I believe will look to have a big game against one of his former teams and in my mind could be the difference maker in this one. Okay enough rambling, long story short- I am backing a Jets team with new life after a big comeback win on the road last week and hungry to right the ship on Prime Time after with the debacle of their last time out still fresh in their minds as well as the fans. I like Gang Green to give maximum effort here to get after the wounded Fish in the elements in attempt to end their playoff hopes while shining one last positive light on their disappointing season as it comes to an end. JETS+2.5